IceHogs News

Rockford, Ill.-The success of the Chicago Blackhawks over the past six seasons can really be attributed to the organization’s commitment to building the team from within, primarily through the National Hockey League’s annual entry draft.

Beginning on Sunday, 210 draft eligible amateur hockey players will hear their names get called at the 2013 NHL Entry Draft in New Jersey, moving them one step closer to their dream of playing at the game's top level.

Draft coverage begins on the NHL Network, NBC Sports Network and TSN at 1 p.m. (CT) and the first round kicks off at 2 p.m. with the Colorado Avalanche picking first.

Since joining the American Hockey League and becoming the top minor league affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2007-08, the draft has provided the IceHogs with the core of the team's roster. At least one player from every Blackhawks draft class, beginning with the 2001 class up to last year’s crop, has played in a game in Rockford.

Over the past six seasons, 156 different players have pulled on an IceHogs sweater and skated in an AHL game with the club. Of the 156 skaters, 91 (58.3%) of them were drafted by an NHL team, while 48 (30.8%) were chosen by the Blackhawks.

Last season, 30 of the 44 (68.1%) players to suit up and play for Rockford were selected in the annual NHL Entry Draft, including 23 (52.3%) by the Blackhawks.

Players, however, who get selected this weekend, probably won't play at the professional level on a fulltime basis for a couple of seasons. Of the eight players chosen by Chicago in last June's draft, only Garret Ross played professionally as he skated in a pair of games with Rockford. There will be at least seven players out of the 11 drafted from 2011 playing professionally in 2013-14.

Last season's IceHogs team had eight former first round picks play with the club (Kyle Beach, Phillip Danault, Nick Leddy, Kenndal McArdle, Mark McNeill, Rostislav Olesz, Dylan Olsen and Philippe Paradis). Beach (2008), Danault (2011), McNeill (2011) and Olsen (2009) were the first rounders picked by Chicago.

There were also seven second-round draft picks on the IceHogs ‘12-13 roster (Adam Clendening, Jimmy Hayes, Jeremy Morin, Brandon Pirri, Brandon Saad, Maxime Sauve and Kent Simpson) with four of them (Clendening-2011, Saad-2011, Simpson-2010 and Pirri-2009) getting selected by the Blackhawks.

Of the 30 players on Rockford's team last season, seven of them were chosen by organization's other than the Blackhawks.

In the modern day of the NHL salary cap, the draft remains a crucial factor in a team’s long term success. The likes of Bryan Bickell, Dave Bolland, Troy Brouwer, Dustin Byfuglien and Niklas Hjalmarsson were draft picks by Chicago, worked their way through Rockford and the AHL to become Stanley Cup Champions with the Blackhawks in 2010.

Check out IceHogs.com all week as we preview the 2013 NHL Entry Draft
Monday, June 24th: Draft Breakdown at Blackhawks pick
Tuesday, June 25th: Mock Drafts
Wednesday, June 26th: Breakdown of the Blackhawks first overall picks over the past 10 yearsThursday, June 27th: Draft Impact on the IceHogs
Friday, June 28th: An update on the progress of all of Chicago’s draft picks from the 2011 and 2012 drafts

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